(boxscore)
Seniors Matt Sosna (Stratford, NJ) and Charles Jones (Philadelphia, PA) scored 19 points apiece for Widener, which came out firing in the second half for a 76-61 triumph over Messiah in the Commonwealth Conference semifinals at Schwartz Center.
Top-seeded Widener (21-5) is off to the final for the fourth straight season and fifth time in six campaigns. It will host No. 3 seed Elizabethtown on Saturday at 3:00 pm, gunning for its third consecutive league crown and fourth straight NCAA Tournament berth.
Widener raced to a 35-26 halftime lead by shooting 53 percent (16-of-30) from the floor and forcing No. 4 seed Messiah into 12 turnovers. Sosna scored 15 points in that span, hitting 6-of-8 from the field and 3-of-5 from 3-point range.
The Pride left no doubt in the second half, opening on a 12-3 run for a 47-30 cushion with 14:01 to play. Jones netted six points in that span for Widener, which shot 48 percent overall (24-of-50) from the floor and won all three meetings from Messiah in one season for the first time.
Freshman Perry Wright (Severn, MD) scored a season-best 13 points in just 16 minutes off the bench for Widener, which entered tonight third in the NCAA Middle Atlantic Regional Rankings.
Andy Hawk and Drew Sneeringer poured in 13 points apiece for the Falcons (9-17), who shot 47 percent (21-of-45) overall but committed 22 turnovers.
Widener has not won three straight conference titles since 1976-78 and has not played in four successive NCAA Tournaments since 1975-78. The school has won 14 Middle Atlantic/Commonwealth Conference titles in its history and played in the NCAA Tournament 16 times.
